FERPA

I’d like to ask this as generally as I can so that the answers are as applicable as possible, but I’m writing from a small college library in NY, so I’d like to get a sense for myself and my staff about what our rights, obligations and protections for students and patrons are as Librarians in the event of a “visit” or raid by Immigrations and Customs Enforcement.

This is a timely and important question.

Regarding the ability of law enforcement (including ICE, FBI, ATF, etc.) to enter a college or university campus: the administration will make that determination, and it will be based on many factors.

Recently, Zoom introduced new AI features and updated their terms of service agreement, indicating that any user data can be used to train their AI products (TOS 10.4: https://explore.zoom.us/en/terms/).

The day this story really broke (August 7, 2023, a day that will live in minor infamy), Nathan in my office pointed this issue out to me.

"Did you see that Zoom is going to use customer content to train AI?" he asked (this is what passes for casual morning conversation in my office).

For an Interlibrary Loan Electronic Transmission (whether printed out and included with the item(s) or sent via electronic means) in a K-12 setting, can a student's name (the one ultimately borrowing the item) be used in the "receipt" or notification slip? Should a student's School ID number be used? Can both be used at the same time?

This question comes at us from a school district public library and supporting Board of Cooperative Educational Services ("BOCES").

Recently a question has come up at our academic library concerning patron privacy and the notification to a patron (usually a student) concerning excessive downloading of content from databases in our collection. Our current practice has been to receive notification from the vendor about perceived illegal downloading.

Questions that combine higher education, data access, and "terms of use" enforcement always give me a moment of sad reflection, as I remember Internet pioneer and activist Aaron Schwartz. It was an alleged overuse of an academic database at MIT in 2012 that lead up to his demise.[1]

My institution has a small number of documents in our archives related to previous graduate students. Some are definitely educational records (transcripts, field placement evaluations).

I am always fascinated by the transformation documents can undergo, simply by operation of law, circumstance, or time.  For instance:

Is it legal to print student photos with their names on their school library cards for circulation use?

I didn't realize it in first grade, but a school library[1] is one of the first places a person experiences "the right to privacy" unmediated by a parent or guardian.

Many districts have had COVID-19 access for SORA Ebooks. I am not sure if it is ED Law 2-d compliant. We do not want to support or suggest products to our membership that do not meet that compliance. Can you let us know? Thank you!

New York school libraries[1] operate in a complex web of regulations governing student privacy.  Laws such as FERPA, CPLR 4509, and “ED 2-d” all restrict what can be done (and can’t be done) with library records related to students.

I am wondering if sending unsealed overdue notices to students in their classrooms is a FERPA violation. The notices might appear face up on their desks or in their hands for other students to see. The prices of overdue materials are listed on our notices.

What a difference a month makes.  When this question came in, my kids were in school, my staff was at the office…and I am willing to bet at least one person in that group had an overdue library book.

My question is: do public libraries have any legal obligation to collect emergency contact information for children (age 17 and under) attending library programs without a parent or caregiver present/on the premises?

This question is rather like asking an astronautical engineer: When on a spacewalk, are there any safety procedures specifically related to securing my helmet as I exit the airlock? 

Is a parent or guardian allowed to access the titles of books that that their child(ren) have checked out from the school library?

Are school administrators allowed to access the titles of materials a student checked out?

In the state of New York, library records linked to the names of users can only be disclosed:

1) upon request or consent of the user;

2) pursuant to subpoena or court order; or

3) where otherwise required by statute.

Therefore, the strong default answer to the member’s questions is “NO.”